Insomniac Librarians Why sleep when there's field literature?

Scarily, folks have occasionally invited me to speak or contribute writings.

This has led to a scary amount of paperwork in paper form related to copyright. Some of it quick, easy, logical, and non restrictive (Thanks MLA and Code4Lib) and reams of scary paperwork from ALA.

Between all of the Patrons and pick up work, we don't seem to have too much time to reflect.

Maybe reading The Diagnosis forced me to mull things over even more lately, but I've always kind of felt like we don't spend enough time with Patrons. One of the most rewarding things about rural Librarianship was not having someone standing about with a whip giving me agita about how much time I spend per Patron.

Folks are in a tizzy from Orson Scott Card getting the Edwards award from YALSA.

They should be.

However, the whys of why they should be have been contorted.

I can't help but wonder how many people read things in their entirety or even carefully scan before they go commenting about them.

First, folks are seriously misconstruing the rules YALSA uses in determining the Edwards.

http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/booklistsawards/margaretaedwards/maepolicy/...

This is *not* an endorsement of someone's life.

I'm a big fan of This Film is Not Yet Rated. As much as we're meant to be robotically neutral arbiters of the Truth, I foisted that baby on a good many of my Patrons. They were thankful for it.

In today's Times, there's a great article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/movies/11scot.html?_r=1&8dpc&oref=slog...

I agree wholeheartedly.

Is the jig up? Are folks more receptive than our Field might be willing to admit?

It's getting to be Western New Year.

Traditionally, folks make resolutions that they break later on in the year.

We know we're going to break em, but we make em anyway. This is good. This is much better than not bothering to try and be better.

So, as I am given to preach, here I go.

If you get the chance this year to pull someone up to you, please do so.

I was having a conversation with my Maths Doctor Friend Donna. Donna is great. Our relationship has really morphed and grown and done extraordinary things over the years.

First, my apologies if I actually have a readership. The boy's been busy with his schoolwork, so time to write has been short.

I can't help but think over Shu, Ha, and Ri these last few days. I can only imagine it's been brought on by an awesome combination of extra karate and Nonaka and Takeuchi.

So I went to this here jigger in me best cataloguing disguise

http://www.smith.edu/libraries/staff/fivecoll/nextgen.htm

Amusing was that they referred to me and did so as "from the Guggenheim". I wish. I of course corrected that with the proviso that I would certainly entertain offers of employment from the Guggenheim. (Who wouldn't)

Anyway, this was awesome. It was awesomely awesome.

I expected there to be like 3 guys in a room at the top of the DuBois. It's cataloguing. Cataloguing is, as a schoolie once said "the broccoli of Library Science."